Chicken Pox Not High Risk In Pregnancy

June 12, 1986|United Press International

BOSTON -- Pregnant women who catch chicken pox are apparently at some risk of developing complications and giving birth to deformed children but more common ailments can present greater risks, researchers said Wednesday.

``People need to be aware of the risk,`` said Dr. Sharon G. Paryani of the Stanford University School of Medicine in a telephone interview. ``But they also need to be aware that it`s not a very high risk.``

In one of the largest studies of its kind, Paryani followed 43 women who contracted chicken pox while they were pregnant.

Four women developed pneumonia, including one woman who subsequently died. Four women experienced premature labor, including two who gave birth prematurely.

Eight babies were apparently infected with chicken pox while in the womb. Four babies developed no symptoms. Two babies were born with active chicken pox but recovered. One baby developed a related disease known as shingles but also recovered.

One baby, however, was born with a variety of complications, including a deformed right leg and brain and eye damage. The baby died from pneumonia after six months.

Women who catch German measles during the first trimester of their pregnancy have a risk of up to 85 percent of giving birth to a deformed child, Paryani said. The risk from chicken pox is only about 9 percent, she said.

But based on the study, women who never had the disease and are exposed to chicken pox when they are pregnant -- especially in the first trimester -- may consider seeking inoculations against developing the disease, she said.

Few studies have been conducted on the effect of chicken pox on pregnancies because most women had the disease when they were children. The chicken pox virus causes a fever and rash and usually runs its course within two weeks.